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Wednesday, 31 March 2010

So, as this has been much requested, especially by Laura (<3) and Gemma (<3), I'm finally getting round to posting my makeup collection and how I store it. I think i've done quite well with what I have and although it may not work for everyone, It's perfect for me. Its took a while to finally get it how I want. So here goes!

This is the general set up of my makeup desk, the desk is from Ikea, I got it a few months ago and i'm not really sure what the name of it is. I like it because its long and thin, which fits perfectly in my bedroom and has 2 drawers.

The first drawer is full of things that are in transition, I either don't have room anywhere else for them or I need to depot them or they just don't belong anywhere else, like the eyelash curler!

The drawers have 3 cutlery trays in them which provides me with handy little sections to store things in. These were again from Ikea and I think only about 50p each. Three fit perfectly in the drawer without a millimeter to spare!

The second draw is a mish-mash of stuff. I keep my various different eyeshadow pallets in here that are too big for my Muji drawers and then there is spare pots, disposable mascara and lipgloss wands, sponges, etc... Whatever I find that doesn't go anywhere else.

Then I have these 3 cubes stacked. These are from Office Depot in America, I ordered them online and had them shipped to the UK via my Bundle Box.

The bottom cube is just 2 drawers. I like them because they are quite deep and the perfect size for pencils and things.

As you can see, the top drawers is full of eyeliners, both liquid and pencil. The bottom is full of mascaras, I always have lots of mascaras on the go at once.

The top cube is full of lipglosses, I have the miniatures that came in last years MAC Holiday Sets on the right and tubes on the left. The top section is random glosses from all different brands that aren't MAC.

The middle cube has all my MAC lipglosses on the right and dazzleglasses in the top section. The left section is all my MAC shadesticks and the bottom is NYX Jumbo Pencils and two YSL cream eyeshadows.

Next to my cubes are some of my brushes, I keep the brushes I use the least out on my desk. Face brushes in the vase I got from John Lewis for £12, I filled it with rice to keep the brushes upright. The eye brushes are in my Glitzy-Glam brush holder which came with the beads.

My favourite brushes I keep in my brush roll. The majority of these are MAC with a few others thrown in for good measure.

My mirror is a Babyliss one from John Lewis, which was my present from my Nan and Grandad for Christmas. It has just one light setting you switch on and off at the base.

I keep my MAC eyeshadow pallets just simply stacked on my desk. I have used nail varnish to paint a stripe on the side so I know which pallet is which. If you want to see what eyeshadows I have and how they are organised see my earlier blog post HERE.

These are my drawers from Muji, click here to be taken to the exact ones on the website. They are individual drawers that stack together. So whenever you outgrow your collection you can simply add another drawer on top. They come in a few different sizes, so its really good for addicts like me that have to keep buying more drawers.

So, working from the bottom up, the first drawer is all blush products. I depot all my MAC blushes into pallets except the Limited Edition ones that I like the packaging of.

The next drawer is primers, foundation and concealers. This drawer is too full and needs separating. I will get another drawer to split the primers from the rest. MUFE definitely have the best foundations and primers in my opinion.

The next drawer is my highlighters. I think i'm lacking in the MAC MSF department. I'm on the lookout for a couple more in different shades.

Lipsticks come next, I have MAC on one side and everything else on the other.

I store them this way so the labels are facing out. That way when I pull the drawer out I can read the labels through the plastic sides and its easy for me to find what i'm looking for.

Next are my paint pots and fluidlines, these are probably my favourite things to collect. I adore paintpots and never put eyeshadow on without one. I also have my MUFE Flash Pallet in here.

This drawer is my MAC Pigments, including samples. I get mine from Makeup Geek's online store, and she ships to the UK. I have a few MAC Paints in here too.

These are mineral pigments from Calypso Minerals, I have had them a while and they are good products but I wouldn't recommend the company. I had to complain over and over to get these once I had paid for them, I finally got them about 6 months later. The company has had some problems recently and I wouldn't go near them now.

The last drawer is a mixture of eyeshadow quads and pallets.

This is how it looks all together!

Finally, on top of these drawers are my brush cleanser and product sanitiser from Beauty So Clean, I got these at IMATS. I have mixing mediums and all of my Naked pigments that I need to buy another drawer for and then my kabuki brushes, MAC 181 and 182.

Wowzers! So there you have it. Hopefully you will have picked up some tips and trick to organise your collections. If you have any questions please leave them in the comments!

Tuesday, 30 March 2010

So, I'm back and kicking off my blogging again by sharing my amazing trip with you all. Hopefully this post will inspire to to visit Jukkasjarvi too! Last weekend my Mom and I went to the Ice Hotel in Sweden, It was absolutely the most amazing place i've ever been to and I have so many wonderful memories to keep forever. I really recommend everyone to visit, you really will not regret it.

We stayed for 3 nights and packed as much as possible into our holiday. On our first night we had a trip through the forest on snowmobiles in search of the Northern Lights. We didn't get to see the lights but it still was an incredible trip, we got to eat dinner in a log cabin heated by an open fire, before returning to the hotel. The best part of the excursion was that I got to drive our snowmobile, which was so fantastic. I loved every minute of it.

The next day we had signed up for a Reindeer excursion, which again was another unforgettable experience. We got to ride reindeer sledges, eat a reindeer sandwich in a traditional Sami tent and we also had a go a lassoing the reindeers. It was great fun and we definitly had a great time.

Our second night was also our turn in the Ice Hotel. We were in the Ice Suite 303, the Spooning Suite, which was based around a cutlery drawer. I have to be honest, sleeping in the ice room was not for me, I didn't like it very much but I am definitly glad I tried it. The Ice Hotel itself is incredible and you can't walk more than 10 feet before you say WOW! We also had cocktails in the Ice Bar, served in glasses made of ice (Of Course!)

On our final full day in Sweden, we got to do something me and my Mom were most excited about in the run up to our trip. A ride on a husky sledge, and let me tell you, it definitely didn't disappoint. The dogs were the most adorable animals. They loved being fussed and were just brilliant. We stopped halfway through our journey through the forest for coffee and cake by a campfire. Absolutely incredible!

I can't stress enough how brilliant our 4 days were, everything far exceeded our expectations and I know that both my Mom and I will struggle to find anything to top this. The Swedish people were amazing, they couldn't do enough for you, everything was so well organised and more importantly there was absolutely nothing we didn't like. If you ever get the chance to go, please do! I promise you will have a fantastic time!

If I haven't bored you with my pictures here, you can see the rest of them HERE in my public facebook album!

Wednesday, 10 March 2010

I have noticed this tag going round a few blogs, so I thought i'd give it a go!SKINCARE-How many times do you wash your face daily?Twice per day, once in the morning and once at night. If i'm really tired I will use a cleansing wipe to take my make up off as soon as i'm home and in for the night.-What skin type do you have? (dry,oily,combo)I have combination skin. My t-zone is extremely oily but my cheeks are getting more and more dry. I think I need to drink more water.

-What is your current facial wash?I'm on a 'using it up' kick, so i'm using up all the half empty bottles up. At the moment i'm using Elemis Tri-Enzyme Resurfacing facial wash.

-Do you exfoliate?Yes, I don't have a regular routine that I stick to. But every so often I will.

-What brand do you use?I have loads that need using up. At the moment i'm using MAC's Volcanic Ash and a Clean & Clear one simultaneously.

-What moisturizer do you use?At the moment i'm alternating between Lush Enzymion and a Neutrogena one I got on holiday in Atlanta. I don't think it's available in the UK.

-Do you have freckles?No.

-Do you use eye cream?Yes, but not regularly. I have a Garnier eye roll-on and a Prescriptives Vitamin C one on the go at the moment.

-Do you or did you have acne prone skin?I've never had severe acne but I have frequent breakouts, especially on my chin area. Grrrrrrr!

-Did you ever have to use Pro-activ?Yes I have tried it and liked it. I go back to this sometimes when i'm feeling particularly spotty!

MAKE-UP-What foundation do you use?I always have a few on the go but my favourite is MUFE HD foundation in No.115
-How about concealer?My favourite concealer is a Prescriptives one that I can't get hold of anymore :( I have others on the go too. I like the MUFE Full Coverage concealer and the MAC Studio Finish.

-Do you know your undertone color?Yes I have Pink undertones.

-What do you think of fake eyelashes?I love them, they completely change a look. But i hardly ever wear them, one because I have very long thick natural lashes and two because they are such a faff to use. I always get glue all over the place.

-Did you know that you are supposed to change your mascara every 3 months?Yes, but I just ignore that. I toss them when they start to dry up. I have had some mascaras for a year and (touch wood) i've never had a problem.

-What brand of mascara do you use?I use loads of different mascaras, but my holy grail is Cover Girl Lash Blast. I adore it.

-Sephora or MAC?I think this is a silly question. They are 2 completely different things. MAC is a brand and Sephora is a shop that sells lots of different kinds of brands. But if they were next door to each other, I would choose to go into Sephora everytime over MAC. Its like Toys R Us for makeup addicts.

-Do you have a MAC Pro-card?Yes, I got it at imats.

-What makeup tools do you use in make up application?Brushes, sponges and my fingers!

-Do you use make-up base/primer for the eyes?Absolutly, I couldn't live without Urban Decay Primer Potion! I also always use a MAC Paint Pot over my UDPP.

-For the face?Yes, my favourite being Benefit's That Gal. I love how it makes my skin feel and also it smells amazing!

-What is your favorite eyeshadow (color or shade)?I have too many to pick one, it would have to be a neutral brown.

-Do you use pencil or liquid eyeliner?Pencil. I only use liquid eyeshadow when i'm going for a dramatic look.

-How often do you poke your eyes with an eyeliner pencil?Never.
-What do you think of pigment eyeshadows?I love them, unfortunately i'm always rushing to put my makeup on and pigments are just really unpractical when you're in a rush.

-Do you use mineral makeup?Yes, occasionally.

-What is your favorite lipstick?MAC's Lightly Ripe that came out with Cult of Cherry. I also love Benefit's Silky Finish in Swoonderful and Good To Go.

-How about lipgloss?My favourite is probably MAC's Dazzleglass in Miss Fizz or Babysparks.

-What is your favorite blush to use?Recently it has been my Nars Orgasm or Stila Convertible Colour in Lillium.

-Do you buy your makeup on ebay?Never, there are way too many fakes out there.

-Do you like drugstore makeup?Somethings, but mostly I prefer high end brands.

-Do you go to CCO's? (cosmetic company outlets)I have to go to one when i'm on holiday in the States (I love the ones in Vegas and Primm) but i've never been to the UK ones.

-Did you ever consider taking make-up classes?Yes, I have my eyes on a freelance course in London. But i've not taken the plunge to do it as yet.

-Are you clumsy in putting on makeup?No, i've many years of practice.

-Name a makeup crime that you hate?I have people who wear their lipstick outside of their natural lip line. It just looks awful, don't do it!

-Do you like colorful shades of makeup (lipstick,eyeshadow) or neutral ones?I like both, I wear more neutral looks but I still love to wear bright colours too.

-If you could leave the house using just ONE make up item,what would you use?Mascara (and Eyeliner!)

-Could you ever leave the house without any makeup on?Yes, I do it all the time.

-Do you think you look good even without any makeup on?I don't think I look bad, but I always feel better when I have makeup on.

-In your opinion, what is the BEST makeup line?For overall quality I would have to say Make Up Forever, but MAC is a very close second.

-What do you think of Makeup?I love makeup, its an obsessive hobby of mine. But it is not the be all and end all, its not to be taken so seriously. Its something fun that I like to play with. For me it is a form of art and a way to show my creativity.

Just as a little FYI moment, I have changed my username on Twitter. Incase you're wondering who is popping up in your feed, I am now CharlotteColes.

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A Girl Writes is my journal of life, I like to write about my recent discoveries both in the kitchen and elsewhere, films i've seen, books i've read, things i've experienced and the journeys i've taken. So make yourself a cuppa, pull up a chair and stay a while. I love to chat so drop me an email: charlotteelizabethcoles@yahoo.com